Bar-shouldered dove description

An elegant, attractive species (2)(4), the bar-shouldered dove (Geopelia humeralis) is a medium-sized, long-tailed dove from Australia and New Guinea (5). Its scientific name, Geopelia, is highly appropriate for this ground-dwelling bird, as geo means ‘ground’ and peleia means ‘dove’ (6).

Delicate blue-grey feathers cover the head, upper breast and sides of the neck of the adult bar-shouldered dove (4)(5), while the hind-neck is a coppery or reddish-brown colour with dark barring (4)(5)(7). The back, wing-coverts, rump and uppertail-coverts are silky brown (2)(4), and narrow bands on the edges of the feathers of the upperparts give the bird a scaled appearance (4). Two feathers in the centre of the tail are dark grey, with the remainder being reddish-brown at the base, increasing in colour intensity towards the tips, which are mostly white (4). The underparts of the bar-shouldered dove are pale (5) and unbarred (7), being described as a light red or pale wine colour. The belly of this species is white (2)(4).

A blue-grey eye-ring surrounds the yellowish to green eyes of the bar-shouldered dove (2)(4)(5), and the bill is also greyish-blue (2)(4). The bar-shouldered dove’s legs and feet are a pinkish-red (2)(4).

The colouration of the female bar-shouldered dove is similar to that of the larger male (4). However, the female tends to be greyer on the breast and is generally duller overall (2). The juvenile bar-shouldered dove is also much duller than the adult male, and in addition it lacks the coppery patch and barring on the hind-neck (5). There is some colour variation between the three subspecies of bar-shouldered dove, with the northern Australian subspecies generally being lighter in colour, and the New Guinea subspecies being darker (2)(5).

The bar-shouldered dove tends to produce a rather loud ‘coo-coo’ which is uttered at long intervals, although during the breeding season this interval is shorter and the notes take on a softer tone (4).

Related species

Bar-shouldered dove biology

A gregarious bird, the bar-shouldered dove is often seen in mangroves in flocks comprising several hundred individuals (4), and often follows its conspecifics around closely (2).

As a terrestrial forager (13), the bar-shouldered dove spends much of its time on the ground (2)(4), searching for the seeds of various grasses (2)(4)(5)(11)(14), herbs(5) and leguminous plants (4), as well as grain (14). This species tends to feed within short grass close to cover (5), but it is also known to venture into thickets where it forages for berries and other fruit (4)(14). Although its diet is primarily vegetarian, the bar-shouldered dove has been recorded eating the occasional insect (2). This species needs to drink throughout the day (5), and so is rarely found far from water (2)(5)(10).

There is little information available on reproduction in the bar-shouldered dove, but it is thought to breed in August (4). The nest is a thin platform made of slender twigs and roots placed loosely on a branch or within the fork of a tree, and it is usually well hidden and sheltered from the elements (4)(5). A typical bar-shouldered dove clutch consists of one or two delicate, fleshy-white eggs (2)(4), which are incubated by both the male and female (5) for a period of about 22 days (2). The chicks are fed on regurgitated crop milk by both adult birds (5), and leave the nest approximately 10 to 12 days after hatching (2).

Bar-shouldered dove range

The bar-shouldered dove is found in Australia and New Guinea (5)(7)(8)(9)(10), as well as the Montebello Islands (11) and islands in the Torres Strait (9).

In Australia, the bar-shouldered dove is abundant in the northern and eastern parts of the country (2)(4)(5)(9)(10), including central and eastern New South Wales, northern parts of the Northern Territory, and north-western Western Australia (9). It is also found throughout much of Queensland, although it is absent from the south-western regions of the State (9), and it is thought to be expanding its range southwards on the east coast (10). The bar-shouldered dove has also been recorded in Indonesia (8).

Species with a similar range

Bar-shouldered dove habitat

Found in thickets (4), mangrove forests (2)(4)(5)(9)(10) or in humid, grassy woodland (5)(10), the bar-shouldered dove is never far from water (2)(5)(10). It is known to inhabit swampy ground and the banks of running streams (4)(9), and has even been reported to have established populations on forested sand cays (12). The bar-shouldered dove also occurs in urban areas (5)(9), including parks and gardens (10).

Bar-shouldered dove status

Bar-shouldered dove threats

The bar-shouldered dove has an extremely large range, and in the absence of any evidence of population declines or substantial threats, this species is not considered to be at risk of extinction (8). However, the bar-shouldered dove is known to be affected by fire (15), and is significantly more abundant in unburnt areas of habitat (16).

Bar-shouldered dove conservation

While there are currently no known conservation measures in place specifically targeting the bar-shouldered dove, this species is known to have benefitted from land clearance for agriculture, and is a common species in urban areas of northern Australia (5).

Glossary

Small feathers concealing the bases of larger flight feathers, usually on the wings or tail.

Crop milk

A liquid secreted from the lining of the crop (a muscular pouch near the throat) of adult pigeons, which is fed to the young by regurgitation.

Herb

A small, non-woody, seed bearing plant in which all the aerial parts die back at the end of each growing season.

Incubate

To keep eggs warm so that development is possible.

Leguminous

Relating or belonging to plants in the legume family (Leguminosae or Fabaceae), which includes peas, beans, clover and alfalfa. Leguminous plants produce seeds in pods (legumes), and typically have root nodules containing symbiotic bacteria which are able to convert nitrogen from the air into nitrogen-containing compounds that benefit the plant.

Subspecies

A population usually restricted to a geographical area that differs from other populations of the same species, but not to the extent of being classified as a separate species.

Wing-coverts

Small feathers which cover the bases of other larger feathers, helping to smooth airflow over the wings.

Burbidge, A.A. and Morris, K.D. (2002) Introduced mammal eradications for nature conservation on Western Australian islands: a review. In: Veitch, C.R. and Clout, M.N. (Eds.) Turning the Tide: The Eradication of Invasive Species.Proceedings of the International Conference on Eradication of Island Invasives. IUCN Species Survival Commission, IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.

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